Martinsburg daily gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1887-1887, 1887-03-30
THE KINKS In THE HOSE.
WHAT CAUSED THE GREAT DISASTER
At THE RICHMOND HOTEL.

The Coroner Inquiring Into the Buffalo
Holocaust-Testimony Of the Night Por-
ter and One Of the Proprietors Of the
Hotel-The Origin ~ the Fire.
BUFTALO, n. Y, March 20. - Coroner
Kenney continued his inquest into the cause
Of the death Of the Richmond fire victims.
The first witness called was Joseph MeCabe,
night porter at the hotel He said: 1T was
my business to make the rounds OF the house
every thirty or forty minutes during the
night On the day Of the late fire went on
duty at o'clocx p. m. During the evening
was in and oft of the coat room several
times up to o'clock ia the morning. I had
no occasion to go there again, but am posi-
tive that the gas was nearly turned off, =
Mr.. Airport was the first person to notice
the fire At the time was in the reading
room sitting down. He called to me, and we
went to the coat room together. The fire
was located in the northeast corner under
the stairs, and first seemed to me to be about
three feet high and about two feet wide The
blaze came from the floor noticed it in
particular, and do not think the fire came
up through the floor rushed for the hose
as qelickly as possible, and Strengthened it
out through the Office, and turned on the
water. / saw the water fill the hose about
thirty feet, and would not go any further. ]
then rushed to the dining room door, and
grabbed two pals of water and dashed it on
the fire. Then ] started for more water, but
the flames cut me off, Mr.. Airport then
turned on the electric bells, and we ran to
the front door together, think the kinks
in the hose prevented the water from going
through All this happened in three or four
minutes, and during this short period of
time the flames seemed TO spread with devils
fury Once outside of the burning building
Iyelled FIRE. aud afterward turned my at
tention to saving the lives of the guests. As
soon as the firemen arrived they made sew
eral brave attempts TO put the long ladders
up to the front window on Main street, but
each time they were unsuccessful Oh account
Of the wires. In my opinion every ole of
the guests could have been savei but for
these wires. ~
In answer to q question whether he ever
went TO sleep during working hours Mr. NJ
Cabe said: YES, occasionally But on the
night of the fire was too busy | had not
been drinking during tine evening, and did
not see any of the other boys take anything.
smoked cigar or two during the evening
down in the porter's room, but not upstairs.
The nearest gas JET to the coat room oatsid,
Was in the wash room, fully fifty feet away.
Thesouth wall in the basement of the Boston
Clothing house was at least seven feet north
of the coat room; SO there was no chance OF
the fire having originated in the Boston The
coat room was swept out clean during the
day. have no theofy how the fire origi-
mated, unless SOMEBODY accidentally dropped
a burning match in the col5 room Ipassed
the coat room several times between o'clock
and the time of the breaking out OF the fire,
but did not notice anything irregular There
were no strange or suspicious persons in the
hotel after O'Clock. firmly believe, how
ever, that although there was no one about
the Office except Mr.. Piummer, Mr., Airport
and myself, employees, that the fire must
have originated by some tson dropping
match on the floor. Still cannot account
for any particular person that might have
done so. The electric wire switch board was
situated about five feet from where / first
saw the fire, and could not have been the
cause.
The next witness called was Mr. II. Press
Whitaker, one of the, proprtators of the
Richmond Mr.. Whitaker could not give
any evidence that tended to throw any new
light upon the direct origin of the fire. He
states that the hotel was paying very well,
and he could not believe that the origin of
the fire was anything but purely acct
dental